Care Quality Commission chief executive Julian Hartley has resigned with immediate effect after an inquiry was launched into “repeated maternity failures” at the NHS trust he previously ran for 10 years.
His departure came after bereaved families affected by failings at Leeds told The BMJ it was “untenable” for Hartley to continue in the role.
Hartley, chief executive of the regulator since December 2024, said, “This has been an incredibly difficult decision.
“However, I feel that my current role as chief executive of CQC has become incompatible with the important conversations happening about care at Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, including during the time I was chief executive there.
“I am so sorry for the fact that some families suffered harm and loss during this time.”
The resignation comes after health and social care secretary Wes Streeting this week announced an inquiry into maternity and neonatal services at Leeds.
A BBC investigation earlier this year found that the deaths of at least 56 babies and two mothers at the trust over the past five …
